The Sphaerocoryne lefevrei or Rumduol is the National Flower of the Kingdom of Cambodia. Rumduol is so common in Cambodia that one will hear this flower in Khmer (Cambodian) songs – Cambodian writers (stories, songs, ballads, poems) wrote songs telling of tales revolving around the Rumduol flower or about Rumduol itself, such examples are 〈Rumduol Kraties〉 and 〈Rumduol Pursat〉.

• Botanical Name: Sphaerocoryne lefevrei or Sphaerocoryne affinis (f. Mitrella mesnyi or Melodorum fruticosum)

• Common Name

  • English: Rumduol

  • Khmer: Rumduol

Cambodians love this flower that they grow it themselves for decoration of their houses. It was also used during the ancient Khmer times to produce lip waxes for women, thanks to its fragrant and attractive smell, today, Cambodian women are compared to Rumduol. The Rumduol tree grows to 8–12 meters in height, with the yellow-white Rumduol flower – also known as Sphaerocoryne affinis scientifically.

Cover image: 〈Rumdoul〉 by ទេព សុវិចិត្រ, dedicated to the Public Domain under CC0 1.0 Universal.

This article was first published on Asean Citizens on 2007-10-06 @961.12 (07:04:01 UTC+8).

〈Cambodia National Flower: Rumduol〉 © 2007 Yohan Yukiya Sese Cuneta.
License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC-BY-SA-4.0), except where noted.